Air conditioner having variable air volume control device

ABSTRACT

Provided is an air conditioner including a variable air volume control device. The air conditioner includes: an indoor unit main body including a main outlet through which air is discharged; a blower placed in the indoor unit main body and blowing air toward the main outlet; and a controller adjusting a second discharge rate of air in an air cleaning mode independently of a first discharge rate of air in a heating or cooling mode, wherein the second discharge rate of air is varied within a range different from a range in which the first discharge rate of air is varied.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation application of U.S. patentapplication Ser. No. 15/274,803 filed on Sep. 23, 2016, which is acontinuation application of PCT Application No. PCT/KR2016/000694 filedon Jan. 22, 2016, which claims priority to Korean Patent Application No.10-2015-0011041 filed on Jan. 23, 2015, which are incorporated herein inits entirety by reference.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to an air conditioner, and moreparticularly, to an air conditioner including a variable air volumecontrol device capable of varying the discharge rate of airindependently in an air cleaning mode and a heating/cooling mode.

2. Description of the Related Art

Air conditioners are used to cool or heat indoor air. There are varioustypes of air conditioners having various shapes, such as wall-mount-typeair conditioners, stand-type air conditioners, large air conditioners,and small air conditioners.

If an air conditioner is operated in a cooling mode, a gas-phaserefrigerant compressed by a compressor is condensed by a condenserthrough heat exchange with outdoor air, and then the condensedrefrigerant is supplied to an evaporator through an expansion valve. Atthe evaporator, the refrigerant evaporates while exchanging heat withindoor air, and thus an indoor area is cooled. If the air conditioner isoperated in a heating mode, the above-mentioned cycle is performed inthe reverse order, and thus the indoor area is heated.

As described above, since air conditioners are used for cooling cyclesor heat pump cycles, air conditioners generally include: an outdoor unitincluding a compressor and a condenser so as to compress and condense arefrigerant; and an indoor unit including an evaporator so as to cool anindoor area by evaporating the refrigerant. However, some airconditioners include indoor and outdoor units combined as one unit.

In addition, a large number of recent air conditioners include indoorunits equipped with air cleaners so as to remove contaminants from airin addition to heating/cooling air in a heating/cooling mode.

Such air conditioners capable of removing contaminants such as dust fromindoor air may be operated in seasons such as winter in which cooling isnot necessary, so as to provide a pleasant indoor environment.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view illustrating an air conditioner of therelated art including an air cleaner 10.

Referring to FIG. 1, in the air conditioner of the related art, an inlet2 is formed in a lower region of a front panel 1 so as to introduceindoor air into the air conditioner, and an outlet 3 is formed in anupper region of the air conditioner so as to discharge the air to anindoor area after a heat-exchange or purification process.

An inlet grill 4 and an outlet grill 5 are respectively arranged on theinlet 2 and the outlet 3 in a front-to-rear, horizontal, or verticaldirection so as to protect the inside of the air conditioner whileallowing air to flow therethrough.

In addition, the air cleaner 10 is arranged in a center region of thefront panel 1 to purify indoor air.

Unlike the air conditioner illustrated in FIG. 1, air cleaners 10 ofsome air conditioners are not exposed to the outside. In any types ofair conditioners of the related art, however, the flow rate of indoorair through an outlet (3, refer to FIG. 1) in an air cleaning mode isdependent on the flow rate of indoor air in a heating or cooling mode.That is, it is impossible to independently vary the discharge rate ofindoor air in air cleaning mode. Therefore, technology for removing thisproblem is required.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Technical Problem

The object of the present invention is to provide an air conditionerincluding a variable air volume control device capable of varying thedischarge rate of air independently in an air cleaning mode and aheating/cooling mode.

Technical Solution

To solve the above-mentioned technical problem, the present inventionprovides an air conditioner including: an indoor unit main bodyincluding a main outlet through which air is discharged; a blower placedin the indoor unit main body and blowing air toward the main outlet; anda controller adjusting a second discharge rate of air in an air cleaningmode independently of a first discharge rate of air in a heating orcooling mode, wherein the second discharge rate of air is varied withina range different from a range in which the first discharge rate of airis varied.

Advantageous Effects of the Invention

According to the present invention, the discharge rate of air in an aircleaning mode may be varied independently of the discharge rate of airin a heating/cooling mode. That is, the discharge rate of air in the aircleaning mode may be varied according to a user's instructionindependently of the discharge rate of air in the heating/cooling mode.

According to the present invention, if it is necessary to keep an indoorarea silent in an air cleaning mode, a variable air volume controldevice may be operated to decrease the discharge rate of air and thus toreduce noise. Conversely, if it is necessary to rapidly clean indoorair, the variable air volume control device may be operated to increasethe discharge rate of air to an original value.

According to the present invention, particularly, since the dischargerate of air is independently varied without a significant structuralchange from an air conditioner structure of the related art, the airconditioner of the present invention may be very conveniently used andlosses that may be caused by the purchase of an additional air cleanermay be prevented.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view illustrating an air conditioner of therelated art including an air cleaner.

FIG. 2 is a schematic front perspective view illustrating an airconditioner according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view illustrating a front inlet panel.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view illustrating a blade unit.

FIGS. 5 and 6 are views illustrating an operation of a left variable airvolume control device.

FIGS. 7 and 8 are views illustrating an operation of a right variableair volume control device.

FIG. 9 is a view illustrating variable air volume control devicesarranged in and adjacent to a blower.

FIG. 10 is a view illustrating a structure of the air conditioneraccording to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 11 is a schematic front perspective view illustrating an airconditioner according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 12 is a view illustrating a modified variable air volume controldevice according to the present invention.

FIG. 13 is a view illustrating a method of adjusting the discharge rateof air in an air cleaning mode according to another embodiment of thepresent invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

Advantages and features of the present invention, and implementationmethods thereof will be clarified through the following descriptionsgiven with reference to the accompanying drawings.

However, the present invention is not limited to the embodiments setforth herein but may be embodied in different forms.

Rather, these embodiments are provided so that the present inventionwill be thorough and complete, and will fully convey the scope of thepresent invention to those skilled in the art. Therefore, the scope ofthe present invention should be defined by the claims.

Accordingly, in some embodiments, well-known device structures,well-known processes, and well-known techniques will not be described indetail to avoid ambiguous interpretation of the present invention.

Throughout the present disclosure, like reference numerals denote likeelements. In the following description, technical terms are used onlyfor explaining exemplary embodiments, and not for purposes oflimitation.

The terms of a singular form may include plural forms unlessspecifically mentioned. In addition, the term “comprises (or includes)”specifies the presence of stated elements or operations (action), butdoes not preclude the presence or addition of one or more other elementsor operations (actions).

Unless otherwise defined, all terms (including technical and scientificterms) used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by thoseof ordinary skill in the art to which this invention belongs.

It will be further understood that terms, such as those defined incommonly used dictionaries, will not be interpreted in an idealized oroverly formal sense unless so defined herein.

Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will bedescribed with reference to the accompanying drawings.

FIG. 2 is a schematic front perspective view illustrating an airconditioner according to a first embodiment of the present invention;FIG. 3 is a perspective view illustrating a front inlet panel; FIG. 4 isa perspective view illustrating a blade unit; FIGS. 5 and 6 are viewsillustrating an operation of a first left variable air volume controldevice; FIGS. 7 and 8 are views illustrating an operation of a firstright variable air volume control device; FIG. 9 is a view illustratingvariable air volume control devices arranged in a blower region; and

FIG. 10 is a view illustrating a structure of the air conditioneraccording to an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIGS. 2 to 10, when the air conditioner 100 of theembodiment is operated in an air cleaning mode, the discharge rate ofair may be varied independently of the discharge rate of air in aheating or cooling mode. In other words, a user may adjust the range ofa first discharge rate of air in the heating or cooling mode to bedifferent from the range of a second discharge rate of air in the aircleaning mode.

The air conditioner 100 may include a variable air volume control devicein at least one air passage, or a blower motor control line for eachmode, so as to independently adjust the first discharge rate of air inthe heating or cooling mode and the second discharge rate of air in theair cleaning mode. For example, a control method using a variable airvolume control device and a control method using blower motor controllines may be used in combination so as to adjust the second dischargerate of air in the air cleaning mode. The control method using avariable air volume control device will be first described withreference to FIGS. 2 to 10, and the control method using blower motorcontrol lines will be described later with reference to FIG. 13.

The variable air volume control devices illustrated in FIGS. 2 to 10 arenon-limiting examples provided to help understand the present invention.For example, such a variable air volume control device may be providedin at least one air passage of the air conditioner 100 (such as an airintake passage or an air discharge passage). In the followingdescription, however, only the case in which variable air volume controldevices are provided in a front inlet panel 140, a blower outlet 125 a,and a sub-outlet 112 will be described for conciseness of description.

The air conditioner 100 includes first variable air volume controldevices 130 a and 130 b, a second variable air volume control device170, and a third variable air volume control device 190 that areprovided at different positions, and thus the discharge rate of air inthe air cleaning mode may be varied independently of the discharge rateof air in the heating or cooling mode.

In the embodiment, the first variable air volume control devices 130 aand 130 b, the second variable air volume control device 170, and thethird variable air volume control device 190 are provided in threepositions. However, the number and positions of variable air volumecontrol devices may vary according to embodiments. For example, the airconditioner 100 may include at least one among the first variable airvolume control devices 130 a and 130 b, the second variable air volumecontrol device 170, and the third variable air volume control device190.

In the embodiment, the air conditioner 100 may include an indoor unitmain body 110, a blower 120, a front inlet panel 140, the first variableair volume control devices 130 a and 130 b, the second variable airvolume control device 170, and the third variable air volume controldevice 190.

As described above, the air conditioner 100 may include an indoor unitand an outdoor unit. The outdoor unit may include a compressor 117 and aheat exchanger (not shown). The indoor unit may include a heat exchanger115, the blower 120, and an air filter (not shown).

The structure of the air conditioner 100 illustrated in the drawings maybe the structure of the indoor unit of the air conditioner 100, and so,the indoor unit may be a stand-type indoor unit.

However, the scope of the present invention is not limited thereto. Theair conditioner 100 of the embodiment is not limited to including astand-type indoor unit. For example, the air conditioner 100 may be anintegrated air conditioner in which indoor and outdoor units arecombined, a wall-mount type air conditioner, or a ceiling-mount type airconditioner.

The indoor unit main body 110 forms the exterior of the air conditioner100 of the embodiment. The indoor unit main body 110 may be coupled toan exterior cabinet 113 in which many components are arranged.

The indoor unit main body 110 includes a main outlet 111 to dischargeair (cool, hot, or purified air). A louver may be provided on the mainoutlet 111 so as to close or open the main outlet 111.

The sub-outlet 112 is adjacent to the main outlet 111, and the blower120 is provided inside the main outlet 111. The front inlet panel 140 isprovided below the main outlet 111 to introduce ambient air into theindoor unit main body 110.

For example, variable air volume control devices may be arranged atthree positions so as to independently vary the discharge rate of air.That is, the first variable air volume control devices 130 a and 130 bmay be provided in a region of the front inlet panel 140, the secondvariable air volume control device 170 may be provided in a region ofthe blower 120, and the third variable air volume control device 190 maybe provided in a region of the sub-outlet 112. The first to thirdvariable air volume control devices 130 a, 130 b, 170, and 190 may havesubstantially identical structures.

The first variable air volume control devices 130 a and 130 b, thesecond variable air volume control device 170, and the third variableair volume control device 190 are independently operated at theirpositions, and thus the discharge rate of air may be adjustedindependently of a cooling or heating operation unlike the case ofrelated art in which the discharge rate of air is dependent on a coolingor heating operation.

First, the first variable air volume control devices 130 a and 130 bprovided in the region of the front inlet panel 140 will be described.

Inlets 141 a and 141 b are formed in both lateral sides of the frontinlet panel 140. The inlets 141 a and 141 b have a hole shape and may bereferred to as a left inlet 141 a and a right inlet 141 b according totheir positions.

The first (left) variable air volume control device 130 a (refer toFIGS. 5 and 6) may be provided at the left inlet 141 a, and the first(right) variable air volume control device 130 b (refer to FIGS. 7 and8) may be provided at the right inlet 141 b. The first left and rightvariable air volume control devices 130 a and 130 b have identicalstructures and functions except that the first left and right variableair volume control devices 130 a and 130 b are arranged at differentangles.

The first left variable air volume control device 130 a (refers to FIGS.5 and 6) is coupled to the front inlet panel 140 in a region of the leftinlet 141 a, so as to open or close the left inlet 141 a according torotation of a blade 151.

Similarly, the first right variable air volume control device 130 b(refers to FIGS. 7 and 8) is coupled to the front inlet panel 140 in aregion of the right inlet 141 b, so as to open or close the right inlet141 b according to rotation of a blade 151.

Each of the first left and right variable air volume control devices 130a and 130 b includes a device frame 131 coupled to the front inlet panel140, filter supports 133 coupled to a region around an opening 132formed in a side of the device frame 131, and a blade unit 150 coupledto the device frame 131 to close or open the inlet 141 a or 141 b.

A pre-filter 135 is coupled to the filter supports 133 so as to removecontaminants from air drawn into the indoor unit main body 110. Thefilter supports 133 are examples and may not be used. That is, thepre-filter 135 may be kept in position by any other method.

In the embodiment, the filter supports 133 may be rail-type supports.That is, the filter supports 133 may include support bodies 133 a inwhich rail insertion portions 133 b are formed, and the pre-filter 135may be inserted into the rail insertion portions 133 b.

The blade unit 150 may be coupled to a side of the device frame 131, andif the air cleaning mode is selected through an input unit 185, theblade unit 150 may open or close the left or right inlet 141 a or 141 bso as to vary the discharge rate of air.

In the embodiment, the blade unit 150 includes: the blade 151 having asize equal to or greater than the size of the inlet 141 a or 141 b andoriented perpendicular or parallel to the inlet 141 a or 141 b; a stepmotor 153 coupled to an end portion of a rotation shaft 152 forming theaxis of rotation of the blade 151 so as to rotate the blade 151; and abearing 154 coupled to the other end portion of the rotation shaft 152such that the blade 151 may be rotatably supported.

In this case, the blade 151 may be rotated 90 degrees by the step motor153 under the control of a controller 180 as shown in FIGS. 5 to 8. Thatis, the step motor 153 may rotate the blade 151 under the control of thecontroller 180 so as to orient the blade 151 in a directionperpendicular or parallel to the inlet 141 a or 141 b.

In this case, the rotation shaft 152 may be located in the blade 151 ata lateral position separate from the center of a cross-section of theblade 151.

Next, the second variable air volume control device 170 provided in theregion of the blower 120 will be described.

Unlike the first variable air volume control devices 130 a and 130 b,the second variable air volume control device 170 is provided in theregion of the blower 120 and is operated independently of the firstvariable air volume control devices 130 a and 130 b so as to adjust thedischarge rate of air blown by the blower 120.

As shown in FIG. 9, the second variable air volume control device 170includes a blower outlet blade 171 placed in a blower housing 125forming the exterior of the blower 120, and the blower outlet blade 171is rotated within a preset angle range so as to adjust the dischargerate of air blown by the blower 120 toward the blower outlet 125 a ofthe blower housing 125.

In the embodiment, the second variable air volume control device 170 issubstantially the same as the blade unit 150. That is, the secondvariable air volume control device 170 includes: a blower outlet blade171 placed at a position adjacent to the blower outlet 125 a within theblower housing 125 forming the exterior of the blower 120; a step motor173 coupled to a rotation shaft 172 of the blower outlet blade 171 toapply rotation force to the rotation shaft 172 of the blower outletblade 171; and a blower outlet bearing 174 supporting an opposite end ofthe rotation shaft 172 while allowing the rotation shaft 172 to rotate.The step motor 173 may be supported on a bracket B placed inside theexterior cabinet 113.

The controller 180 may control the step motor 173 according to a signalinput to the input unit 185 so as to rotate the blower outlet blade 171within a preset angle range and thus to close or open the blower outlet125 a.

In the embodiment, the blower 120 is located above the heat exchanger115. However, the blower 120 may be located below the heat exchanger115. Such modifications of the arrangement of the blower 120 and theheat exchanger 115 are within the scope of the present invention.

Finally, the third variable air volume control device 190 provided onthe sub-outlet 112 will now be described.

Although not illustrated in detail, unlike the first variable air volumecontrol devices 130 a and 130 b and the second variable air volumecontrol device 170, the third variable air volume control device 190 isprovided in the region of the sub-outlet 112 and is operatedindependently of the first variable air volume control devices 130 a and130 b and the second variable air volume control device 170 so as tovary the discharge rate of air flowing through the sub-outlet 112.

Owing to the third variable air volume control device 190, clean air maybe discharged through the sub-outlet 112 independently of air flowingthrough the main outlet 111.

That is, in the air cleaning mode, only when the discharge rate of cleanair is adjusted, the sub-outlet 112 is opened, and clean air isdischarged through the sub-outlet 112. At this time, the controller 180may determine whether to open or close the main outlet 111 according topreset conditions, and the compressor 117 of the outdoor unit may bestopped. For example, in the air cleaning mode, when the discharge rateof air is adjusted in five steps, as shown in Table 1, the controller180 may close the main outlet 111 so as to adjust the discharge rate ofair to be lower than the discharge rate of air in the heating or coolingmode and may open the main outlet 111 so as to adjust the discharge rateof air to be equal to or higher than the discharge rate of air in theheating or cooling mode.

Alternatively, the third variable air volume control device 190 may bepositioned in a region of the main outlet 111. The third variable airvolume control device 190 has identical structures as the secondvariable air volume control device 170, and thus a description thereofwill not be presented here for conciseness.

The controller 180 individually controls operations of the firstvariable air volume control devices 130 a and 130 b, the second variableair volume control device 170, and the third variable air volume controldevice 190 according to signals input to the input unit 185 such as aremote control.

The controller 180 may control at least one of the first to thirdvariable air volume control devices 130 a, 130 b, 170, and 190 so as toadjust the discharge rate of air in the air cleaning mode independentlyof the discharge rate of air in the heating or cooling mode. Table 1below shows examples of control values that may be set for the first tothird variable air volume control devices 130 a, 130 b, 170, and 190 soas to adjust the discharge rate of air to be within the range of 0 to 15m3/min (CMM) in the air cleaning mode. Table 1 is an example to helpunderstand the present invention. That is, control values such as anglesof the first to third variable air volume control devices 130 a, 130 b,170, and 190 may be varied according to embodiments.

TABLE 1 Variable air volume control device states Air volume Firstvariable Second variable Third variable flow rate air volume air volumeair volume Main Devices m³/mm (CMM) control devices control devicecontrol device outlet Ranges 10 to 15  0°  0° open or closed open 7 to9.9 20° 30° open closed 4 to 6.9 30° 40° open closed to 3.9 45° 60° openclosed 0 90°  0° closed closed

For example, if the mode selected using the controller 180 is the aircleaning mode, particularly a silent air cleaning mode in which thedischarge rate of air is decreased, the controller 180 may stop thecompressor 117, close the main outlet 111, and open only the sub-outlet112 so as to discharge clean air through the sub-outlet 112.

In another example, if the discharge rate of air in the heating orcooling mode is adjusted in three steps, the discharge rate of air inthe air cleaning mode may be adjusted in more steps than in the heatingor cooling mode. That is, if the discharge rate of air is adjusted inthree steps in the heating or cooling mode by controlling the rotationspeed of a motor, the rotation speed of the motor may be controlled inthree steps in the air cleaning mode as in the heating or cooling mode.In this case, owing to the variable air volume control devices 130 a,130 b, 170, and 190 of the embodiment, the discharge rate of air in theair cleaning mode may be controlled in five steps as shown in Table 1instead of three steps.

In another example, if the discharge rate of air in the air cleaningmode is set to be equal to the discharge rate of air in the heating orcooling mode, the first to third variable air volume control devices 130a, 130 b, 170, and 190 may not be operated, and the main outlet 111 maybe opened. However, if the discharge rate of air in the air cleaningmode is set to be different from the discharge rate of air in theheating or cooling mode, the sub-outlet 112 (that is, the third variableair volume control device 190) is opened.

That is, although the speed of a blower motor is constant in the heatingor cooling mode and the air cleaning mode, the controller 180 maycontrol at least one of the first to third variable air volume controldevices 130 a, 130 b, 170, and 190 so as to obtain a first dischargerate of air in the heating or cooling mode and a second discharge rateof air in the air cleaning mode, wherein the second discharge rate ofair may be different from the first discharge rate of air.

The controller 180 may include a central processing unit (CPU) 181, amemory 182, and a support circuit 183.

The CPU 181 may be one of various industrial computer processors capableof individually controlling operations of the first variable air volumecontrol devices 130 a and 130 b, the second variable air volume controldevice 170, and the third variable air volume control device 190.

The memory 182 is connected to the CPU 181. The memory 182 is acomputer-readable recording medium which is locally or remotelyinstalled. For example, the memory 182 may include at least one commonlyavailable memory such as a random access memory (RAM), a read onlymemory (ROM), a floppy disk, a hard disk, and a digital recordingmedium.

The support circuit 183 is coupled to the CPU 181 to support operationsof the CPU 181. The support circuit 183 may include a cache, a powersupply, a clock circuit, an input/output circuit, a sub-system, or thelike.

In the embodiment, the controller 180 individually controls operationsof the first variable air volume control devices 130 a and 130 b, thesecond variable air volume control device 170, and the third variableair volume control device 190 according to signals input to the inputunit 185. In the embodiment, the memory 182 may store processes of thecontroller 180 for individually controlling operations of the firstvariable air volume control devices 130 a and 130 b, the second variableair volume control device 170, and the third variable air volume controldevice 190 according to signals input to the input unit 185. Typically,software routines may be stored in the memory 182. Alternatively, thesoftware routines may be stored or executed by another CPU (not shown).

In the embodiment, the processes are performed using the softwareroutines. However, at least some of the processes may be performed usinghardware. That is, the processes of the embodiment may be embodied assoftware executable in a computer system, hardware such as an integratedcircuit, or a combination of software and hardware.

According to the structures and functions of the embodiment, unlike inthe related art, the discharge rate of air may be adjusted in the aircleaning mode independently of the discharge rate of air in the heatingor cooling mode. That is, the discharge rate of air may be independentlyadjusted in the air cleaning mode according to a user's instruction.

In the embodiment, particularly, since the discharge rate of air isindependently adjustable without a significant structural change, theair conditioner 100 may be very conveniently used and losses that may becaused by the purchase of an additional air cleaner may be prevented.

FIG. 11 is a schematic front perspective view illustrating an airconditioner 200 according to a second embodiment of the presentinvention.

The air conditioner 200 of the current embodiment has the same structureas the air conditioner 100 of the previous embodiment.

In the current embodiment, however, main outlets 211 are provided onboth sides of an indoor unit main body 210. That is, the air conditioner200 has the same structure and functions as the air conditioner 100 ofthe previous embodiment except for the main outlets 211.

In the current embodiment, unlike in the related art, the discharge rateof air may be adjusted in the air cleaning mode independently of thedischarge rate of air in the heating or cooling mode. That is, thedischarge rate of air may be independently adjusted in the air cleaningmode according to a user's instruction.

FIG. 12 illustrates a modified variable air volume control device.

Referring to FIG. 12, a blade unit 350 includes: a blade 351 orientedperpendicular or parallel to the inlet 141 a or 141 b (refer to FIG. 3);a step motor 353 coupled to an end portion of a rotation shaft 352forming the axis of rotation of the blade 351 to rotate the blade 351;and a bearing 354 coupled to the other end portion of the rotation shaft352 such that the blade 351 may be rotatably supported.

The blade 351 includes a plurality of slidable plates 351 a and 351 bsuch that the area of the blade 351 may be automatically adjusted.

According to the current embodiment in which the blade 351 includes theplurality of slidable plates 351 a and 351 b, many advantages such asflexibility in handling the size of the inlet 141 a or 141 b andprecision in adjusting the open area of the inlet 141 a or 141 b may beobtained.

If the variable air volume control device 350 is used, unlike in therelated art, the discharge rate of air may be adjusted in the aircleaning mode independently of the discharge rate of air in the heatingor cooling mode. That is, the discharge rate of air may be independentlyadjusted in the air cleaning mode according to a user's instruction.

FIG. 13 is a view illustrating a method of adjusting the discharge rateof air in an air cleaning mode according to another embodiment of thepresent invention.

Referring to FIG. 13, a blower motor 1300 of a blower 120 receivescontrol signals from a controller 180 through a plurality of controllines. The controller 180 uses first group control lines 1310 of theplurality of control lines so as to control a first discharge rate ofair in a heating or cooling mode, and second group control lines 1320 ofthe plurality of control lines so as to control a second discharge rateof air in an air cleaning mode. The first group control lines 1310 andthe second group control lines 1320 may share some control lines. In thecurrent embodiment, the controller 180 uses the second group controllines 1320 that include the first group control lines 1310 andadditional two control lines, so as to control the second discharge rateof air in the air cleaning mode.

The speed of the blower motor 1300 may be increased or decreasedaccording to control signals received through the control lines so as tovary the discharge rate of air of the blower 120. For example, the speedof the blower motor 1300 is controlled as shown in Table 2.

TABLE 2 Motor speed control Heating or Air cleaning Overall controlModes cooling mode mode steps of motor Motor speed S S steps A A A B B BC C C L L =>3 steps =>5 steps =>5 steps

For example, the controller 180 may control the blower motor 1300 so asto adjust the first discharge rate of air in three steps A, B, and Cwithin the range of 5 to 10 m3/min (CMM) in the heating or cooling mode,and the second discharge rate of air in five steps S, A, B, C, and Lwithin the range of 3 to 15 m3/mm (CMM). In other words, the maximum ofthe second discharge rate of air in the air cleaning mode may beadjusted to be higher than the maximum of the first discharge rate ofair in the heating or cooling mode, and the minimum of the seconddischarge rate of air in the air cleaning mode may be adjusted to belower than the minimum of the first discharge rate of air in theheating/cooling mode.

In the case of only using the variable air volume control devices 130 a,130 b, 170, and 190 illustrated with reference to FIGS. 2 to 10, sincethe speed of the blower motor 1300 is constant in the cooling/heatingmode and the air cleaning mode, the discharge rate of air in the aircleaning mode is not increased higher than the maximum of the dischargerate of air in the cooling/heating mode. According to the currentembodiment, however, the speed of the blower motor 1300 may be adjustedaccording to modes, and thus the discharge rate of air may be adjustedwithin different ranges in different modes.

In another embodiment, the variable air volume control devices 130 a,130 b, 170, and 190 described with reference to FIGS. 2 to 10 may beused together with the motor control method described with reference toFIG. 13 so as to adjust the discharge rate of air within more variousranges in more steps in the air cleaning mode. For example, in the aircleaning mode, when the motor speed is in the step S shown in Table 2,the variable air volume control devices 130 a, 130 b, 170, and 190described with reference to FIGS. 2 to 10 may be controlled so as toadjust the discharge rate of air within a range obtainable between themotor speed steps S and A. Furthermore, in the air cleaning mode, thevariable air volume control devices 130 a, 130 b, 170, and 190 may beadjusted so as to adjust the discharge rate of air to be lower than thedischarge rate of air obtainable by the motor speed step L.

While embodiments of the present invention have been described, it willbe understood by those of ordinary sill in the art that various changesand modifications may be made therein without departing from the spiritand scope of the present invention. That is, such changes andmodifications are included in the scope of the present invention definedby the following claims.

What is claimed is:
 1. An air conditioner comprising: an inletconfigured to receive air into the air conditioner; an outlet configuredto discharge the air from the air conditioner; a blower configured toblow the air toward the outlet; a blower motor configured to drive theblower; and a controller configured to control a motor speed step of theblower motor, wherein the number of the motor speed step in an aircleaning mode is different from the number of the motor speed step in acooling mode, and wherein the minimum of a second discharge rate of theair in the air cleaning mode is lower than the minimum of a firstdischarge rate of the air in the cooling mode.
 2. The air conditioner ofclaim 1, further comprising: an air purifying element configured topurify the air introduced into the air conditioner.
 3. The airconditioner of claim 1, further comprising: a remote control configuredto generate an input signal.
 4. The air conditioner of claim 1, furthercomprising: a compressor and a heat exchanger configured to operate inthe cooling mode.